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Guintoli still adapting to Pata Honda

Reigning World Superbike champion Sylvain Guintoli says he’s still adapting his riding style to the Pata Honda machine he switched form Aprilia to at the start of the 2015 season.

Starting the season off on a bad footing after injuring his neck in a Jerez testing crash, he has yet to find the pace to run with the front pack, led by the Dutch team’s 2014 rider Jonathan Rea.

“It’s a different bike but we also have new rules this year. The bike is versatile but I’m still trying to adapt my riding style, to tailor the bike around me but it is taking more time than we expected. We spend each race weekend working in order to get a better feeling but right now we’re not where we want to be. We are putting a great effort but the results haven’t come yet.”

“Of course, the bike has to be ridden in a different way than the one I was riding these past few years. I need to change my riding style and we’re doing a massive work so that I can have a better feeling on the bike.”

However, despite that, the English-based Frenchman is making steady but slow progress on the CBR1000RR – and believes that they’re closer than ever to a breakthrough ahead of this weekend’s Imola round.

“We took a step forward in Assen. I hope that we’ll soon be there because it’s been quite some time without a podium finish. It would be nice to get back on it. We’re not obsessed with the results, the more important is to find the pace and a good feeling on the bike. Once we’ll have this, we’ll be able to gain more speed.”